Iraqi Information Minister Saeed as-Sahhaf said Sunday 77 civilians were killed and 366 others injured by US air strikes on the southern Iraqi city of Basra.

The dead and the injured were victims of cluster bombs, he told a press conference in Baghdad.

US and British war planes began their attacks on Basra around 11:30am (local time) on Saturday, initially bombing the outskirts, but then targeting objectives in the city.

Meanwhile, Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan said that captured enemy soldiers would soon be shown on state television, adding that the war was going well for Iraq.

"Within a few hours you will see the captured enemy soldiers who harassed Souq al-Shuyukh on Iraqi television and you will see the burned tanks in Souq al-Shuyukh," Ramadan told a news conference.

Souq al-Shuyukh is southeast of the southern Iraqi city of Nassiriya, where U.S. Marines have reported encountering strong resistance on their northward sweep.

Ramadan said the war, which U.S. and British forces launched on Thursday in an effort to topple Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, was going well for Iraq. "The military operation is going in an excellent way and the situation is comfortable for Iraq," he said. (Albawaba.com)